ESPN Network: ESPN.com | RPM | NFL.com | NBA.com | NHL.com | WNBA.com | ABCSports | EXPN | FANTASY | INSIDER

 
Women's College Basketball
Scores/Schedules
Rankings
Standings
Statistics
Teams
Transactions
Message Board



 
Wednesday, Mar. 7 1:00pm ET
Sooners get first-ever Big 12 tourney win

RECAP | BOX SCORE

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – This season's Big 12 women's tournament is far from typical for Oklahoma.

Rosalind Ross
Rosalind Ross, left, and the Sooners found a way past Kansas into the Big 12 semifinals. Ross scored 17 points.

Before Wednesday, the top-seeded Sooners were the only conference school not to win a tournament game.

But that changed after Rosalind Ross scored 17 points to help No. 7 Oklahoma beat Kansas 87-61, giving the Sooners a semifinal berth.

"This is the first time in Kansas City that I didn't have to shed tears," said Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale. "We're glad that it's over. The first tournament I brought one outfit. This year, I packed them all."

The Sooners (25-4, 16-1 Big 12) started the game with a 13-0 run, then held off a second-half rally to reach Thursday's semifinals. Oklahoma, the Big 12 regular-season champion, was 16-of-26 from the field in the first half en route to a 40-26 halftime lead.

Ninth-seeded Kansas (12-17, 5-12 Big 12) trailed by 15 points before going on a 7-0 run with 13:18 left to cut the lead to 51-43. But Ross scored six straight points and Kansas couldn't recover.

"There was no doubt in my mind that we were going to come out of it," Sooner guard Sunny Hardeman said. "We've been through this before. We knew what to do."

Hardeman and Stacey Dales had 12 points each and LaNeishea Caufield 10 for Oklahoma. Ross hit 4-of-5 3-pointers as Oklahoma shot 66.7 percent from beyond the arc.

"Rosalind Ross was just outstanding off the bench for us," Coale said.

Jaclyn Johnson had 21 points, Jennifer Jackson added 11 and Brooke Reves 10 for Kansas.

Kansas beat Oklahoma State 66-56 in the first round on Tuesday. Following Wednesday's loss, coach Marian Washington tried to hold back tears.

"In the locker room, I focused on my seniors," she said. "I have three wonderful women. A lot of people don't know about the ups and downs this season. But they carried us through it."

Send this story to a friend





ALSO SEE
Women's College Basketball Scoreboard

Kansas Clubhouse

Oklahoma Clubhouse


Big 12 Conference tournament schedule